Work Begins on WellSpan Hospital, Office Building

YORK, Pa. — Construction has officially begun on upgrades to the emergency power systems at WellSpan York Hospital and the building of a new medical office for WellSpan Health in York. Harrisburg, Pa.-based Alexander Building Construction Co. is serving as the construction manager.

The infrastructure and equipment updates at WellSpanYork Hospital are necessary to support the installation of the facility’s new 6.75-megawatt Emergency Power Generation Plant. The entire project includes management and oversight of the outside generator plant installation, as well as installation of new interior building substations, transfer switches and high-voltage electrical feeders within the hospital campus.

Various buildings of the hospital were constructed between 1927 and 2002, making it likely that electrical shutdowns and tie-ins will affect various parts of the facility throughout the construction process. While the hospital will remain operational, this requires extensive planning and coordination for the project, which will be phased so that existing infrastructure can be maintained as the new infrastructure is installed. The project is slated for completion in October 2013.

Alexander will also work on the new 27,500-square-foot, single-story Queen Street Medical Office Building, which will accommodate York Women’s Health Center and York Pediatric Medicine. It will include 39 exam rooms, an on-stage/off-stage design model with nursing support spaces, separate waiting areas for each practice, and a shared break room and meeting room. It is scheduled for completion in December 2013.

WellSpan York Hospital is a 572-bed facility that employees more than 3,400 people and serves a population of 420,000 in south central Pennsylvania. Since opening in 1880, it has grown into a teaching hospital that was ranked among the top 100 open-heart surgery programs and was recognized by US News and World Report as one of the top 50 hospitals for orthopedics in the country.